Interconnected premises equipment for energy management

ABSTRACT

Energy commodities in the form of electricity and combustible fuel (e.g. natural gas, propane) are used by appliances within a residence or commercial premises in a fashion which is monitored and controlled through a Premises Energy Management System (PEMS). The system facilitates direct monitoring and control of energy-consuming appliances, in real time, utilizing automated programmatic control and a plurality of human interfaces including local display and control, email, web browser, text messaging, and integrated voice response (IVR). A Monitoring and Control Coordinator (MCC) provides centralized coordination of functions and one or more Communicating Appliance Interfaces (CAI) interact with energy consuming appliances are interconnected via wired and wireless communication networks and protocols. The system may retrieve information from third parties, such as from weather services, for optimizing energy usage. An interface may be provided to the energy provider/purveyor to enhance the provision of energy by providing additional real-time services such as demand management and service outage management.

RELATED APPLICATION DATA

This Utility Patent Application is based on Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 60/724,808, filed on 11 Oct. 2005.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

This invention relates to managing the consumption of an energycommodity within premises. More specifically, the invention relates todirect monitoring and control of energy-consuming devices viacentralized programmed control as directed by a consumer or by theprovider of the energy commodity via one or more local and remote userinterfaces.

2. Brief Description of the Prior Art

Control of energy-consuming appliances has historically been implementedthrough local controls provided by the appliance manufacturer, where theterm “appliance” is used generically herein to refer to a device coupledto an energy provider's supply system. Such control has generally beenfacilitated at each individual appliance in a manner appropriate forthat appliance. Such implementations, however, neither provide forcontrol of appliances anywhere other than locally nor provide control ina manner to account for pertinent external factors such as weather,time-dependent cost of energy or a consumer's unanticipated change ofschedule.

To overcome the lack of remote control capability, add-on devices weredeveloped to control individual appliances remotely via a particularcommunications protocol. For example, remote control power supplies fornetwork servers via a serial communications protocol is known as aretelephonic interfaces that allow dialing in to an auto-answer appliancecontroller. Several home automation products exist which allow controlof appliances remotely via programmed schedules and wireless handheldcontrols. Such devices are restricted in their remote controlcapabilities in that they are generally implemented through proprietaryhuman interfaces with limited to no user option as to how the controllermay communicate with the controlled device.

The vast majority of energy-consuming appliances have no means formonitoring or measuring the amount of energy being consumed by theappliance at a given time. While auxiliary devices exist which canmeasure the amount of energy being consumed by an individual appliance,such devices generally have neither the capacity to make the consumptiondata available in a centralized manner for multiple appliances nor thecapability to report this information to the consumer anywhere otherthan at the device itself. Additionally, such devices do not considertime-varying costs of energy and, thus, actual energy costs or savingsare not readily apparent to the user.

Software applications exist which guide a consumer through an “energyaudit” of their premises. Such auditing extrapolates energy use for thepremises as a whole from the estimated amount of energy used by eachappliance. The overall energy usage is not formulated from real-timedata obtained from the appliance, but rather by approximations of energyusage based on the size and type of appliance. Prior art softwareapplications further fail to take into account the time variantconsumption of energy by each appliance and allow presentation of thedata only through the application's user interface.

Thermostatic control of heating and air conditioning systems throughoutpremises are well known and widely used. Typically, such control systemsare implemented through thermostats having simple controls for selectinglevels of heating and cooling and for setting a desired “setpoint”temperature. Thermostatic controls generally are set through some manualaction by the consumer each time a change in the control setting isdesired. Such requirement of user intervention is highly ineffective inmanaging the heating and air conditioning of the user's premises due tothe user's inability or reluctance to continually interact with thethermostat.

To overcome the inefficiencies of manual controls, thermostats have beendeveloped that automate the control of the heating and air conditioningby providing means for the consumer to create a static heating/coolingschedule so as to alleviate some of the continual user interactionrequirements. Such devices are typically cumbersome to program, but mustbe programmed often, such as when seasons change or when change inlifestyle is desired. The user may thus procrastinate and allow muchtime to pass before reprogramming. Clearly, such systems are only asefficient as the user's ability and desire to perform the requiredprogramming. Certain programmable thermostats also allow for short termand long term disabling of the scheduled control, but these thermostatsfail to implement an explicit reminder mechanism to compel the consumerto resume automatic scheduled function once it has been disabled.Typical programmable thermostats also lack remote access to the controlsso that the user must be physically located at the thermostat toinstitute any change in the programmed environmental control policy.

Pool pumps also have been targeted for reduction in energy consumption.However, pool pump control is typically achieved via a programmabletimer for selecting one or more periods during the day to operate thepool pump, thereby creating a static schedule for filtering the poolwater. These devices operate in an open loop which does not take intoaccount constantly changing ambient conditions that affect poolsanitation, such as the amount of sunlight incident on the pool, ambienttemperature and amount of pool use. This shortcoming in controlflexibility often leads to a situation where the consumer schedules thepool pump to run in accordance with worst case conditions, whichrequires the pump to operate longer than is necessary to sanitize thepool.

Certain energy providers have developed and deployed systems to reduceenergy consumption in certain areas during periods where peak demandapproaches production capacity. These systems typically consist ofappliance controls that can interrupt the power to an appliance underthe direct control of the energy provider, such as throughunidirectional transmission of control signals originating at theprovider to the control devices coupled to the appliances. In manycases, a local override mechanism is provided to allow a consumer torestore power to a device for which power has been interrupted by theenergy provider. Often, such activation by the consumer is in conflictwith a prearranged agreement with the provider and the location of suchnon-compliance cannot be isolated by the energy provider. Multipledevices within individual premises or multiple premises in aneighborhood are generally controlled together and, as such, all devicesrespond at once to each control signal. There is presently no mechanismavailable to the energy provider to allow control over energyconsumption at individual devices or individual premises for purposes ofhigh demand allocation of resources, or otherwise.

In light of the state of the art in energy monitoring and control, theneed is apparent for more flexible management of energy use withinpremises.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the invention, an energy management system is providedfor managing consumption of an energy commodity by energy-consumingdevices at premises, where the energy commodity is provided to thepremises by an energy provider. The system includes a plurality ofappliance interfaces each respectively coupled to a corresponding one ofthe devices and monitoring a corresponding rate of consumption of theenergy commodity provided thereto. The appliances are coupled one toanother through a communication network. The system includes further amonitoring and control coordinator coupled to the communication networkand to another communication network. The monitoring and controlcoordinator receives from each of the appliance interfaces over thecommunication network status information that includes an indication ofsaid corresponding rate of consumption. The monitoring and controlcoordinator transmits to each of the appliance interfaces over thecommunication network corresponding control information for controllingthe corresponding rate of consumption, where the control informationcorresponds to information received at the monitor and controlcoordinator over the other communication network.

In another aspect of the invention, the energy management includes aplurality of appliance interfaces each respectively coupled to acorresponding one of the devices and controlling the consumption of theenergy commodity by the corresponding device responsive to controlinformation provided thereto. A monitoring and control coordinator iscoupled to the appliance interfaces through a local communicationnetwork and provides the control information to each of the applianceinterfaces. The control information is determined from externalinformation provided to the monitoring and control coordinator. Thesystem includes a network communication device coupled to the monitoringand control coordinator through a wide area communication network andtransmitting the external information thereto.

In yet another aspect of the invention, a method is provided formanaging consumption of an energy commodity by energy-consuming devicesat premises. Information pertaining to the consumption of the energycommodity is acquired by a monitoring and control coordinator through acommunication network. The monitoring and control coordinator controltransmits information to a plurality of appliance interfaces eachrespectively coupled to a corresponding one of the devices, where thecontrol information is determined from the acquired information.Consumption of the energy commodity is controlled for at least one ofthe devices in accordance with the control information.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary Premises Energy ManagementSystem in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary configuration of equipmentcomponents residing at the target premises in accordance with aspects ofthe present invention;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary configuration of internalcomponents to embody a Monitoring and Control Coordinator consistentwith the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an exemplary configuration of internalcomponents to embody a Communicating Appliance Interface consistent withthe present invention;

FIG. 5 is a system flow diagram depicting real-time energy usagedetermination in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a system flow diagram depicting energy savings determinationin accordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 7A-7B is a process flow diagram depicting baseline energyinformation determination in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 8 is a process flow diagram depicting energy savings determinationin accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention forms a network of interconnected energy-consumingappliances within individual premises to control the consumption of anenergy commodity either locally at the appliance or remotely usingstandard devices with which a consumer already has access andfamiliarity, such as a web browser or a cell phone. As used herein, an“energy commodity” is a consumable product provided to premises by anenergy provider to operate energy-consuming equipment on the premises inexchange for payment of a market price. Such energy commodities includeelectric power, as provided over a power grid, natural gas, as providedthrough a pipeline, and others. It is to be understood that energycommodities may be stored locally to the premises, such as through gastanks and storage batteries. Automated control of consumption of theenergy commodity may occur in accordance with expressed preferences andschedule of the consumer, in accordance with requirements of theprovider of the energy commodity, as well as in accordance with externalfactors such as a current cost of energy, the current time of day andweather conditions.

The invention further incorporates monitoring and measurement means tomonitor the energy usage of an entire premises as well as of individualconnected appliances. The measured data obtained may then be used topresent real-time information to the consumer in a variety of displayformats regarding the energy usage in terms of, for example, estimatedcost of the energy based on a tiered rate, time-varying energy costs,energy savings achieved subsequent to installing the inventive system,and other energy related information such as energy cost savings, GreenHouse Gas (GHG) emissions reduced, and GHG environmental impact reduced.Energy usage information may be used to determine such pertinent anduseful parameters as relative energy use among various appliances, costof energy at per-appliance granularity, and any change in energy usefrom one time period to another. The invention allows such informationto be displayed both locally at the premises at which the appliance islocated as well as on a remotely located device.

Certain embodiments of the invention implement control of heating andair conditioning of the premises in a fully automated manner. Agraphical interface may be provided to facilitate intuitive programmingof heating and air conditioning schedules and various remote controlmechanisms are provided to facilitate unanticipated changes inscheduling, such as in response to varying weather or cost of energy. Anotification system may be provided to alert to the consumer to varioussystem states, such as a disabled thermostat schedule function. By wayof beneficial features of the invention, the consumer may then resumeautomatic scheduled control from a remote device, such as a cell phoneor networked computer.

The present invention may control pool filtration pumps to achieve adesired level of filtration. The system takes into account staticfactors, such as the size of the pool and the size of the pump, as wellas dynamic factors, such as the frequency of pool usage, weather, andamount of sunlight, to optimize the usage of energy with respect tosanitation.

The present invention may be embodied to provide information to theenergy provider to reduce energy consumption in response to peak demandevents. The energy provider may be provided with an interface which canbe used to aggregate the energy usage information from multiplepremises, notify select consumers of peak demand events, and verifyconsumer compliance with demand reduction efforts at per-appliancegranularity.

Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown an exemplary embodiment of aPremises Energy Management System (PEMS) consistent with the presentinvention. The PEMS of the present invention monitors and controls theconsumption of an energy commodity by equipment on premises. As is shownin the Figure, a Monitoring and Control Coordinator (MCC) 200 is coupledto equipment 300 a-300 c at target premises to monitor and control enduse appliances within those premises through a wide area communicationnetwork 110. The MCC 200 further allows consumer interaction with thePremises Equipment through various interfaces, as will be describedbelow. The MCC 200 may be in communication with equipment at singlepremises or at multiple premises with no limitation as to the number ofpremises. The MCC 200 may be located at particular premises, may belocated at the facilities of the energy provider 20 or may be at anotherlocation, such as at the location of a third party contracted tomaintain the system.

The MCC 200 communicates with the Premises Equipment via acommunications network 110 operating under a communication networkprotocol, such as the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol(TCP/IP) suite. The communications network 110 may optionally includeone or more Telecommunications Service Gateways (TSG), 90, 100, for theMCC 200 to interact with end consumers through devices that are notdirectly compliant with TCP/IP communications. Thus, the term “gateway”is used herein in the traditional sense, namely means for couplingnetworks operating under different communication standards or protocols;each TSG provides a translation function from the exemplary TCP/IPcommunications to another form of communications that is related to anend-use communications device. FIG. 1 depicts two such gateways, a ShortMessage System (SMS) Gateway 90 and an Integrated Voice Response (IVR)Gateway (100). SMS Gateway 90 translates information formatted to beTCP/IP compliant to a known communication protocol utilized by aCellular Communications Network 70 for transmitting and receiving textmessages, which allows the MCC, in certain embodiments, to sendinformation to an end consumer that can be displayed on a cellular phone40, Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) 30, or other SMS-enabled endcommunications device. This further enables the MCC 200 to receiveinformation from the end consumer transmitted by the end consumer usingthe SMS feature on the end consumer's cellular phone 40, PDA 30 or otherend communications device. Control messages may be interpreted by asuitable message parsing function at MCC 200, where such messages wouldbe in a format appropriate to the specific application. Such textcommand parsing and decoding is known and will not be further describedherein.

The IVR Gateway 10 translates information from the protocol of network110, e.g., TCP/IP, to a protocol suitable for telephonic voice networksto effect audio interactions with end consumers. It is to be understoodthat telephonic communications may also be conducted through the use ofdiscrete tones generated by the communication device itself. The endconsumer may interact through any telephone designed for two way audiocommunications. Wired phones, or “landline” phones, are enabled throughautomated switching of the audio information through a Public SwitchedTelephone Network (PSTN) 80. Cellular phones 40 are enabled throughrouting of audio information through a Cellular Communications Network70. The invention is not limited to specific implementations oftelephonic networks and the configurations of the telephonic networksillustrated in FIG. 1 are not intended to limit the scope of theinvention. Also, as is shown in FIG. 1, communication may occurconcurrently using both Cellular Communication Network 70 and PTSN 80,by appropriate routing and switching of information between networks.Moreover, is to be understood that the invention is not limited to theexemplary gateways illustrated and described; other protocoltranslations are intended to fall within the scope of the presentinvention.

The MCC 200 may optionally interact with end consumers via a networkedcomputing device 60 which participates in network communications throughapplications executing in accordance with the network protocol. Anetworked computing device 60 may be, but is not required to be, anordinary desktop personal computer (PC), minicomputer, mainframecomputer or may be a portable device such as a laptop computer orhandheld computing device, such as a palmtop computer or even amultimedia player. It is to be understood that the networked computingdevice 60 may operate under the network protocol in a wireless mediumthrough suitable wireless communication techniques. A typicalconfiguration for the networked computing device includes a suitableoutput device for audio or visual display of information and one or moresuitable input devices for capturing input from an end consumer. Thecombination of the output device and the input devices may implement,through appropriate processing instructions executing on the networkedcomputing device, a graphical user interface. In certain embodiments ofthe invention, the graphical user interface may be implemented by a Webbrowser communicating in accordance with a message passing orrequest/response protocol, such as the Hypertext Transfer Protocol(HTTP). The communication may also occur under other message passing orrequest/response protocols, such as the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol(SMTP), the File Transfer Protocol (FTP), and Post Office Protocolversion 3 (POP3), as well as others. Applications operating on theconsumer's device communicate through the network communicationprotocol, such as TCP/IP, and operate in accordance with the messagepassing or request/response protocol at the end consumer's device todecode, for example, status data and to encode user input into statusrequest or control command data. For example, a Web browser applicationmay present data requested by an HTTP “GET” command from the MCC 200 andsubsequently display on the computing device 60 the retrievedinformation in appropriately formatted text and graphical indiciathrough a suitable markup language, such as the Hypertext MarkupLanguage (HTML). Similarly, the Web browser may capture keyboard andmouse input to form requests and commands which are transported to theMCC 200, where they are parsed and acted upon. In another embodiment ofthe invention, an SMTP or POP3 client application may present textualand graphical information from the end consumer and capture textualinput through appropriately formatted email messages. It is to beunderstood that these exemplary applications are intended to showpossible message and command passing schemes suitable for use with theinvention and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention inany way.

The MCC 200 may optionally interact with a computer or other deviceimplementing suitable communication functions within the facilities ofthe energy provider 20. The MCC 200 may provide information to theenergy provider 20 including, but not limited to information pertainingto the end consumer's energy use within the premises as measured by thePremises Equipment 300. The MCC 200 may also request information fromthe energy provider 20 including, but not limited to informationpertaining to the end consumers past and present billable energy use asmeasured by the energy provider, information pertaining to the cost ofenergy in the form of energy pricing to end consumers, informationpertaining to the relationship between the energy provider's energysupply and energy demand, in particular, when the demand is presently,or is predicted to be, at or near the provider's capacity, i.e., theprovider's maximum load.

The MCC 200 may be optionally coupled to one or more informationproviders through the communication network 110. For example, as isshown in FIG. 1, information may be obtained from weather data archives10 maintained by a weather data service. Such service providers areknown to provide weather data over TCP/IP via the World Wide Web or overother Internet applications, where the weather data includes, but is notlimited to current weather measurements, weather forecasts, historicalweather information, pollen count information and weather event warningsand advisories. The MCC 200 may also provide information to the weatherdata service pertaining to current weather data as measured by thePremises Equipment 300. It is to be understood that many otherinformation providers exist and the other types of information may beused in various embodiments of the present invention. Moreover, suchinformation may be included merely to inform the user by way of the userinterface and may not necessarily be used in the management of energyconsumption. However, as the consumption of energy at premises isimpacted by a wide range of factors, the invention contemplates the useof any such information as provided over the communication network 110.

It is to be understood that MCC 200 may be in communication withPremises Equipment 300 a-300 c through communication network 110 evenwhen energy-consuming devices on the premises have been removed from theenergy provider's distribution means, or vice-versa. For example, thepremises equipment may be embodied by, say, an electric car, whichperiodically receives its charge through electricity from a providerprovided through a charging station. In such embodiments, the MCC 200may still communicate with the premises equipment in accordance with theinvention even after the vehicle has been removed from the chargingstation. Similarly, such communication can occur when the provider hasremoved power from the energy-consuming device.

FIG. 2 depicts exemplary target premises 300 equipped in a mannerconsistent with the present invention. The Premises Equipment 300 a-300c, illustrated in FIG. 1, may include any combination of featuresillustrated in FIG. 2 and other suitable devices for carrying out thepresent invention.

As is shown in FIG. 2, an optional Premises Control CommunicationsGateway (PCCG) 310 translates monitoring and control data, and otherinformation, from communication network 110 to a Premises Area Network(PAN) 370. The PAN 370 is a local area network that interconnects thevarious devices, interfaces and sensors of the premises forcommunicating status and control data therebetween. The PCCG 310 mayoptionally include local processing capability, control logic and localdata storage, or any combination thereof, to facilitate uninterruptedmonitoring and control of Premises Equipment in the event of aninterruption in network communications with the MCC 200. Where theinterfaces and sensors within the premises are able to communicatedirectly one with another via the network protocol of network 110, thePCCG 310 may be omitted and the PAN 370 will be operable directly withthe network 110.

The Premises Equipment 300 may include one or more networked computers60 to interface the system to the inhabitants of the premises.Additionally, there may be one or more Premises Display System (PDS) 320located throughout the premises. The functions provided by the PDS 320may be embodied in a single hardware device or integrated into one ormore of the other interfaces or sensors including, but not limited to,the PCCG 310 or the Communicating Appliance Interfaces 400 a-400 b,described below. A PDS 320 provides an alternate user interface to theconsumer and may be implemented in a suitable manner, such as through aprocessor executing a graphical user interface and coupled to a touchsensitive display, or other suitably configured interface device.

Various sensors are optionally located throughout the premises in such away as to measure some physical quantity within or around the premises.The sensed data may then be reported to other system components via thePAN 370. Thus, the sensors have detectors coupled to suitable signalprocessing and communication equipment so that the sensed data may betransmitted over the PAN 370. FIG. 2 depicts three types of sensors, asdiscussed below, but it is to be understood that the invention islimited neither to a single instance of a particular type of sensor norto the specific types of sensors shown in the exemplary embodiment ofthe Figure. It is to be noted, also, that the sensors may be embodied asa separate hardware device or may be integrated into one or more of theother interfaces and sensors including, but not limited to, the PCCG 320and the Communicating Appliance Interfaces 400 a-400 b, which aredescribed further below.

As is shown in FIG. 2, Premises Equipment 300 may include one or moreoptional light sensors 330 to determine the amount of light present inparticular regions of the premises. If a light sensor 330 is locatednear an outside window, it can be used to determine the amount ofsunlight present at a particular time during the day. A light sensor 330may also be used to determine the activation status of lighting loadswithin the premises. Additionally, a light sensor 330 may determine theamount of sunlight impinging on the water of a pool, so as to activatethe pool pump when sunlight may be affecting the level of sanitation ofthe pool.

Premises Equipment 300 may include one or more optional temperaturesensors 340 to determine the temperature in particular areas of thepremises. For example, a temperature sensor 340 may be locatedimmediately outside the premises to determine the ambient outdoortemperature. A temperature sensor 340 may also be placed in the water ofa pool or spa to determine the temperature thereof as part of thefiltration control procedure.

As shown in FIG. 2, Premises Equipment 300 may include one or moreoptional power flow sensors 350 to determine the amount of power beinglocally consumed. A power flow sensor 350 may be connected to the energysupply or delivery system 380 of the premises to measure the amount ofpower that flows through a particular point of attachment. The powerflow sensor 350 is configured to sense the consumption of the applicablecommodity, e.g., electrical power consumption, combustible fuelconsumption or consumption of some other energy commodity. Theconsumption information is then relayed to other components of thesystem over PAN 370. The power flow sensor 350 may also be equipped withcertain detectors and processing equipment to determine various metricspertaining to the quality of the energy supply. By varying the point ofattachment of the power flow sensor 350, the energy can be monitored forthe entire premises, for one or more areas of the premises or for one ormore energy-consuming devices.

The present invention may incorporate other sensors that can be locatedat the premises to include occupancy sensors for determining ifoccupants are present, audio sensors to determine the presence ofparticular audio events, window and door sensors to determine theopen/closed status of windows and doors, and proximity sensors todetermine the presence or absence or certain mobile devices orequipment. Such other sensors may be used to provide auxiliary statusinformation to the user, for example, through the PDS 320, or may beused to determine energy related parameters, such as to turn off aheater when a window or door is open.

As is shown in FIG. 2, Communicating Appliance Interfaces (CAI) 400a-400 b are optionally located throughout the premises and are connectedto an energy-consuming appliance 360 a-360 b at various points along theenergy supply system 380. As previously stated, an appliance can beembodied in any energy consuming device attached to the energy supplyand not just typical household appliances. For example, the appliance360 a may be a refrigerator and the appliance 360 b may be a pool pump.Further, it is to be noted that while only two CAIs 400 a-400 b andassociated appliances 360 a-360 b are illustrated in FIG. 2, any numberof CAIs and appliances may be included in the Premises Equipment 300.Moreover, Premises Equipment 300 may include appliances that are coupledto energy supply system 380, but not to a CAI. The present invention maymonitor the energy consumed in different portions of the energy supplysystem 380, such as through a properly placed power flow sensor 350, andcontrol the consumption of appliances controllable through a CAI, asdescribed below, so as to compensate for an uncontrolled appliance,where practical.

The CAIs 400 a-400 b monitor and optionally control the energy consumingfunctions of the particular device to which they are connected. The CAIs400 a-400 b may be coupled to the device 360 a-360 b through acorresponding generic connection applicable to the energy supply 380.For example, a CAI may incorporate an electrical outlet through whichthe corresponding appliance receives its power. Alternatively, the CAImay be specific in form and function for the particular appliance towhich it is connected. For example, a CAI may have the necessary controlequipment to operate heating, ventilation and air condition (HVAC)equipment. Each CAI 400 a-400 b contains suitable processing equipmentto communicate to other system components via the PAN 370 so as to sendstatus information and receive control information pertaining to theparticular controlled energy consuming appliance 360 a-360 b. Anexemplary CAI is described in further detail below.

Referring now to FIG. 3, there is shown an exemplary configuration ofcomponents to implement a Monitoring and Control Coordinator (MCC) 200consistent with the present invention. The MCC 200 may be embodied inany suitable combination of hardware and software. For example, the MCC200 may be implemented on a single processor computer or may beimplemented in a distributed manner over multiple computers or computerservers. The various components of the MCC 200 may be interconnectedthrough an Inter-Process Communications (IPC) bus 270 known in theinter-processor communication art. Further, the components of the MCC200 may be located together at a single location or may be physicallydistributed at various locations, including but not limited to thepremises to be controlled, the facilities of the energy provider 20, orthe facilities of a third party service provider.

In certain embodiments of the invention, MCC 200 includes a data store210 for logging, persistently retaining and recalling information usedby the system. Scheduler 220 implements a timer function, which is usedto initiate execution of various processes and transactions atpredetermined times and intervals. The functions of the data store 210and scheduler 220 are typical and may be implemented by mechanisms knownin the art. The contributions to various aspects of the invention by thedata store 210 and scheduler 220 will be apparent to the skilled artisanwithout elaboration as to the details thereof.

MCC 200 incorporates logical units to facilitate and define variousfunctional aspects of the invention. The logical units may beimplemented in hardware or software on a general purpose computer, on adedicated processor or on some combination thereof. Whereas, the logicalunits will be described herein in terms of discrete components forconvenience and clarity, the logic may be distributed, such as whenimplemented in concurrently executing threads in a suitablemultithreaded computing environment. Moreover, other logical units maybe incorporated depending on the application. For example, certainembodiments may include interface logic for a third party agent forimplementing functionality specific to the agent's requirements.

As is shown in FIG. 3, certain embodiments of MCC 200 include UserInterface Logic 230 to implement a user interface to the system. TheUser Interface Logic 230 may include a display and input peripherals forimplementing a local user interface or may be separated from the displayand input peripherals to provide the user interface processing. Ineither case, the User Interface Logic 230 formats system information forpresentation to the user in a manner suitable for the targetpresentation medium and solicits and accepts input from the user andeither passes the input to the applicable system component through IPCbus 270 or directly executes an action responsive to the user input.

MCC 200 may include Premises Equipment Interface Logic 240 to facilitatetransactions between the MCC 200 and the Premises Equipment 300. ThePremises Equipment Interface Logic 240 produces information to send tothe Premises Equipment in accordance with the end user's directions. ThePremises Equipment Interface Logic 240 also receives periodic statusinformation from the Premises Equipment 300 and determines what actions,if any, are required. Such actions may involve simply storing sensordata or may require generating command information to act in response toa system state determined from the sensor data and other data receivedat the MCC 200 over the communication network 110.

As is shown in FIG. 3, certain embodiments of the invention includeEnergy Provider Interface Logic 250 within the MCC 200 to facilitateinteractions between the MCC 200 and the applicable data interface atthe facility of the energy provider 20. The Energy Provider InterfaceLogic 250 periodically solicits and receives information from the energyprovider 20 in accordance with the energy provider's available servicesto the end consumer. Information received from the energy provider mayinclude cost of energy, consumer's current energy use and billinginformation, consumer's past energy use and billing information, andstatus of energy supply and demand. The Energy Provider Interface Logic250 determines and executes procedures to store and optionally act uponthis information. Additionally, the Energy Provider Interface Logic 250may transmit information to the energy provider 20, such as energyoutage status for individual premises and aggregated premises, andenergy usage per appliance at individual premises and aggregatedpremises.

As is shown in FIG. 3, the MCC 200 communicates with the communicationnetwork 110 over a plurality of communications protocol interfaces,three of which are illustrated in the Figure. It is to be understoodthat the invention is not limited to the interfaces shown.

In certain embodiments of the invention, an Email Client 260 is used bythe MCC 200 to generate an email message in accordance with SMTP fortransmission to other system components. For example, email messages maybe used to notify users of events that require the use's attention oraction, various reminders including reminders for maintenance of systemcomponents or appliances, notifying energy providers 20 of events whichrequire the energy provider's attention or action, and passinginformation through Telecommunications Service Gateways 90, 100 when thegateways are equipped to receive and process email messages and convertthe messages to the protocol of the Cellular Communication Network 70 orthe PTSN 80. The Email Client 260 may additionally fetch, receive andprocess email messages destined for the MCC 200 for purposes of, forexample, receiving email from end users with information or instructionsin reply to emails sent by the MCC 200, receiving information fromenergy providers regarding energy supply and demand and customer energyusage and billing, receiving information from Telecommunications ServiceGateways which send email as output, and receiving information fromexternal service providers, such as weather archives 10.

Certain embodiments of the invention include a Web Client 280 in the MCC200. The Web Client 280 is used by the MCC 200 to initiate HTTPtransactions with other system components that are HTTP compliant. Forexample, the Web Client 280 may interact with the Premises Equipment 300where the MCC 200 initiates some information transfer or service requestto such equipment, request and receive information from the energyprovider 20 where such information is available via an HTTP compliantWeb Server, request and receive information from an external serviceprovider such as weather archives 10, where such information isavailable via an HTTP compliant Web Server, and request and receiveinformation from a Telecommunications Gateway Service, where suchservice is available through an HTTP compliant Web Server.

The embodiment of FIG. 3 further includes a Web Server 290 as one of thecommunication protocol interfaces of the MCC 200. The Web Server 290 isused by the MCC 200 to respond to HTTP formatted requests and send HTTPformatted information to other HTTP compliant entities in the system.Such information may include interactions with users who utilize a Webbrowser to request and receive information and system changes from theMCC 200, interactions with the energy provider 20, where such providerutilizes an HTTP compliant Web client function to request and receiveinformation from the MCC 200 and to send asynchronous updates to the MCC200, interactions with an external service provider such as weatherarchives 10, where such provider utilizes an HTTP compliant Web clientfunction to send asynchronous updates to the MCC 200, interactions withHTTP compliant Telecommunications Service Providers, where suchproviders utilize a Web client interface to send information regardingthe energy provider's services to the MCC 200. It is to be noted, also,that Premises Equipment 300 may be HTTP compliant and communicationbetween MCC 200 and Premises Equipment 300 may be conducted inaccordance therewith.

FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a Communicating ApplianceInterface (CAI) 400 consistent with the present invention. In certainembodiments, the energy-consuming appliance 360 is connected to the CAI400 in the same manner in which such appliance would ordinarily connectto the corresponding energy supply 380 if the CAI 400 were not present.For example, the connection to the appliance at the CAI may be made viaa plug and socket arrangement, typical of “plug in” appliances, theconnection to the appliance may be made via an electrical connection ofthe associated electrical wires, typical of “hard wired” appliances,which connect directly to the premises wiring without a plug and socket,or by the plumbing of a gas fitting to a gas powered appliance.Similarly, the CAI 400 is also connected to the energy supply system 380in a manner in which the associated appliance connection would be madeto the energy supply system 380 if the CAI 400 were not present. The CAI400 is also connected to other devices within the premises, includingthe Premises Control Communications Gateway 310, via a Premises AreaNetwork 370. In certain embodiments, however, the CAI 400 maycommunicate in accordance with the network communication protocol of thecommunication network 110, in which case the CAI 400 is coupled directlyto the wide area network 110 over which the CAI 400 could interactdirectly with the MCC 200.

As is shown in FIG. 4, the CAI 400 includes a Local Power Converter 410connected to the energy supply system 380 to provide local system powerto components of the CAI 400. It is to be noted that the connections toLocal Power Converter 410 by the other components of CAI 400 are omittedfor clarity in the Figure. The energy supply system 380 may beadditionally connected to a flow control device 480 for controlling theamount of the energy commodity provided to the appliance 360. The flowcontrol device may be a simple interrupt relay or switch or, in the caseof gas, a valve, or may be a switch or valve that is controlled througha waveform, such as through a suitable controller. The flow controldevice 480 controls the flow of the energy commodity from the supply 380to the appliance 360 under the control of the CAI 400.

In certain embodiments, the supplied energy commodity may be monitoredthrough an optional Power Flow Sensor 490, which measures the flow ofenergy from the energy supply system 380 to the appliance 360, and mayobtain various metrics pertaining to the quality of the energy supply.The Power Flow Sensor 490 relays this information to the othercomponents in the CAI 400.

The CAI 400 may optionally include any of a number of indicators, audioand visual, to provide an indication of the status of the correspondingappliance 360 or other aspects of the system. For example, the indicatormay be an Interrupt Indicator 470 to provide an indication, audibly,visually or both, to the user when the energy supply to the appliance360 is being interrupted.

The CAI 400 may optionally include any of a number of user controls tocontrol various operational aspects of the appliance 360, to modify thefunction being performed by the CAI 400 or to provide input to thesystem for some other aspect of system control. For example, as is shownin FIG. 4, a Manual Override Switch 460 is activated when the userdesires to change the supply state of the energy commodity to theconnected appliance 360. The CAI 400 may also include one or moreoptional sensors to measure environmental or occupancy conditions in andaround the CAI 400. The sensors of illustrated in FIG. 4 are similar tothose previously described, however the sensors in the CAI 400 may notrequire equipment for formatting the data to meet the communicationprotocol of the communication network. For example, an optional LightSensor 440 may be included to measure the amount of light present at theCAI 400 and to report the amount to the other components within the CAI400. An optional Temperature Sensor 450 may be included to measure theambient temperature at the CAI 400 and report this to the othercomponents with the CAI 400.

CAI 400 may include a Processor Unit 430 for carrying out certainfunctional and control features. This component may be implemented inthe form of an embedded microprocessor executing processor code held ina persistent storage device (not shown). Alternatively, the processingfunctions may be implemented in discrete circuitry or some combinationof a microprocessor and discrete circuitry. The Processor Unit 430implements the logic to facilitate communications and operation of theCAI 400, such as interrupting and restoring energy to the connectedappliance 360, including implementing a controller function, monitoringenergy usage by the connected appliance 360, processing values obtainedby sensors in the CAI 400 for forwarding to other CAI functions and forcommunicating such values to other entities in the system, receiving andprocessing inputs from a user of the CAI 400, controlling other CAI 400components and to provide status indications of the connected appliance360, executing functions to control the connected appliance inaccordance with some logic which has been requested by the occupants,end consumer, energy provider or other entity. The functions describedare easily implemented in accordance on a per-application basis, such asby programming such functionality and executing programming instructionson the Processor Unit 430.

The CAI 400 may include a Premises Area Network Transceiver 420 suitableto facilitate communications between the CAI 400 and other systemcomponents. The Premises Area Network Transceiver 420 may be coupled tothe Premises Area Network 370 in a suitable manner, includingwirelessly.

FIG. 5 depicts a flow diagram illustrative of certain features of thepresent invention. In the example shown in the Figure, real-time energyusage information is provided to the consumer. One or more Power FlowSensors 350 at the target premises collect information regarding theamount of energy being consumed by individual energy-consumingappliances and by the premises as a whole. This information istransmitted via the Premises Area Network 370 to the Premises ControlCommunications Gateway 310 and then to the Monitoring and ControlCoordinator 200 via the communication network 110. Data pertaining tothe price of the energy commodity for particular premises originates atthe energy provider 20 and is transmitted to the MCC 200 via thecommunication network 110. The MCC 200 utilizes the information providedby the Power Flow Sensor and energy provider to calculate the amount ofenergy being consumed at the premises as well as the cost of thatenergy. This usage information is calculated in the MCC 200 andpresented in various formats including, but not limited to instantaneousenergy being consumed expressed in units of power, extrapolated hourly,daily, weekly, monthly, semi-annual and/or annual energy consumptionexpressed in units of power, and extrapolated hourly, daily, weekly andmonthly energy consumption expressed in units of currency based on theenergy pricing information provided by the energy provider 20. Thisinformation is transmitted via the communication network 110 to one ormore networked computers 60 located within and/or outside the premises.Additionally, this usage information is transmitted via thecommunication network 110 to a Premises Control Communications Gateway310 then via the Premises Area Network 370 to one or more PremisesDisplay Systems 320. The user can select between the different displayformats as desired. As the amount of energy being consumed on thepremises changes, such changes are relayed to the consumer in real-timeto the various displays. Similarly, if changes are made to the price ofenergy by the energy provider 20, such changes are relayed in real-timeand may be displayed in units of currency and further action may beinitiated by the system in response to such changes to alter the rate ofconsumption.

In addition to the monitoring and display of energy usage by appliances,which are stationary within the premises, certain embodiments of theinvention facilitates the monitoring and display of energy usage bymotor vehicles and other mobile energy-consuming equipment. Suchequipment may be connected to a Communicating Appliance Interface (CAI)400, which, in turn, communicates via a Premises Area Network 370 toother elements of the system periodically, when such equipment is inproximity to the premises.

Referring to FIG. 6, there is shown a flow diagram of an exemplaryfeature of the invention that calculates and displays information to endusers regarding the nature and amount of energy savings associated withthe use of the system. Energy savings is calculated as the amount ofenergy used per appliance and/or at the premises as a whole utilizingthe system as compared to the amount of energy used per appliance and/orat the premises as a whole prior to installation and use of the system.

As is shown in the Figure, current and historical weather informationfor the location of the target premises is transmitted from a WeatherArchives 10 to the MCC 200 via the communication network 110. Theinformation may include the average daily temperature for the locationfor particular requested dates, past and present. Such information issorted and stored in the MCC 200 and is used in subsequent calculations.Current and historical billing information for a target premises istransmitted to the MCC 200 from the energy provider 20 via thecommunication network 110. The billing information is sorted and storedby the MCC 200 and is also used in the subsequent calculations. When thesystem is first enabled or at any selected time thereafter, the MCC 200calculates the energy consumption per billing period for the billingperiods associated with the twelve (12) calendar months prior to theinstallation of the system at the target premises. The calculations willbe described further with regard to FIG. 8. Once the calculations havebeen made, the energy savings data are transmitted by the MCC 200 tovarious display devices. Savings information can be transmitted to oneor more networked computers 60, located on premises and/or off premisesvia the communication network 110. Additionally, the MCC 200 cantransmit savings information via the communication network 110 to anoptional Premises Control Communications Gateway 310, which can furthertransmit the data via the Premises Area Network 370 to one or morePremises Display Systems 320. The savings information may be displayedto the consumer in various forms including, but not limited to actualenergy saved during the preceding target period expressed in units ofpower, extrapolated weekly, monthly, semi-annual and/or annual energysavings expressed in units of power, Green House Gas (GHG) emissionssavings during the preceding target period expressed in weight and/orvolume of GHG, extrapolated weekly, monthly, semi-annual, annual and/orlifetime GHG emissions savings expressed in weight and/or volume of GHG,GHG equivalencies, e.g., number of cars that would produce the samevolume of GHG, for the energy saved during the preceding target periodexpressed in units of appropriate to each equivalency, e.g., number ofcars, number of trees, etc., and/or extrapolated weekly, monthly,semi-annual, annual, and/or lifetime GHG equivalencies for the energysaved expressed in units appropriate to each equivalency.

Referring to FIGS. 7A-7B, there is shown by way of a flow diagramvarious calculations performed to establish a consumer's baseline energyusage from previous billing data, normalized for weather. The process isentered at block 705, where a consumer activates the service with theenergy provider. Process flow proceeds to block 715, where the MCC 200retrieves archived billing data, indicated at block 710, for apredetermined period of time, for example, twelve (12) months. Billingperiods are defined by the energy provider 20 and each billing period isidentified by a billing start date and a billing end date. Beginningwith the oldest billing period, as initialized at block 720, andbeginning with the start date of the billing period, as initialized atblock 730, the MCC 200 obtains from the weather archives 10, asindicated at block 735, the weather data for the day being evaluated, asshown at block 740. The number of Degree Days (DD) for the billingperiod, which indicates variability in temperature about somepredetermined benchmark temperature and is initialized to zero at block725, is computed as the accumulation of the DD associated with each dayin the billing period. This computation is shown in the process stepsillustrated in FIG. 7B. At block 745, it is first determined if theAverage Daily Temperature (ADT) for the date being evaluated is greaterthan the benchmark temperature, which in the exemplary embodiment shownis 65° F. The MCC 200 determines DD for each day by calculating theabsolute value of the difference between the ADT and the benchmarktemperature, which is depicted in the subtraction operations in blocks750 and 755, where the resulting value is then added to the runningtotal of DD. It is then determined at block 760 if all days for thecurrent billing period have been evaluated and, if not, the next day isretrieved at block 740. If all days have been evaluated, process flow istransferred to block 765, where the MCC 200 calculates the AverageEnergy per Degree Day (AEDD) based on the Total Energy Consumed (TEC)obtained from the billing information and from the accumulated DD. Suchcalculations vary by application and may include statistical techniques,such as regression analysis. The present invention is intended toencompass all such computational techniques.

In block 755, the MCC 200 sorts the billing start date, the billing enddate, and the AEDD for the billing period and the data are stored in theMCC data store 210, as indicated at block 770. It is then determined ifall billing periods in the twelve (12) calendar month evaluation periodhave been scrutinized, as shown at block 780. If the latest billingperiod has been evaluated, then the process ends at block 785. Ifanother month is to be scrutinized, the procedure returns to block 725,where the next month's data is processed. The data stored at the MCC 200are used in subsequent calculations, as is described below.

Referring to FIG. 8, there is shown a process flow chart of certaincalculations to determine a consumer's energy savings by applying themeasures afforded by the present invention. At the conclusion of anyday, for example, as indicated at block 805, the MCC 200 obtains weatherdata for the day from the weather archive, as indicated at block 815,such as Average Daily Temperature (ADT) for the day stored at theweather archive, as is indicated at block 810. The value DD for each dayof the target period is computed as the absolute value of the differencebetween the ADT and the benchmark temperature, as indicated at blocks820, 825 and 830. Additionally, the MCC 200 obtains the current billinginformation for the target billing period, as indicated at block 840,from the energy provider 20, as indicated at block 835. The MCC 200maintains a cumulative measure of the Actual Energy Used (AEU), as shownat block 845, and stores that total in the data store 210, as shown atblock 850. The AEU may be determined from information derived frommonitored appliances as well as current billing information obtainedfrom the energy provider 20. The MCC 200 then retrieves the AEDD fromthe data store 210, as indicated at block 855, where the benchmark AEDDwas that previously described with regard to FIGS. 7A-7B. The MCC 200then uses the AEDD for the specified billing period to calculate theconsumer's Expected Energy Use (EEU) based on the target period'saccumulated DD of the day preceding the target day, as shown at block860. If the AEU is not less than the EEU for the target day, asdetermined at block 875, the AEU and the EEU, and other pertinentparameters are displayed to the user, as shown at block 855. If,however, the AEU is less than the EEU for the target day, the MCC 200obtains the current price of the energy commodity, as shown at block870, from the energy provider 20, as shown at block 865. The MCC 200 maythen, as shown at block 880, calculate the energy savings in terms ofcurrency or some equivalent savings measure, such as savings in GreenHouse Gas (GHG) emissions. The savings information is then displayed tothe user at block 885 and the process ends at block 890. Savings ofmoney is calculated by the MCC 200 by applying the energy provider's 20current and/or past energy pricing information to the energy used.Savings of GHG emissions are calculated by the MCC 200 by determiningthe amount of GHG that is emitted per energy unit produced by the energyprovider 20 and then multiplying that amount by the energy savings. GHGequivalencies are calculated by applying specific conversion factorsappropriate to each equivalency and as determined by scientificinformation generally available. GHG equivalency information may includethe number of trees associated with the eradication of a unit of GHGemissions or the number of cars associated with the creation of a unitof GHG emissions. Other such equivalencies may be presented as well.

In certain embodiments of the invention, fully automated climate controlof the premises, e.g., heating and air conditioning, is implemented andis controllable both locally to the premises as well as from a remotelocation through the communication network 110. Similarly, heating ofdomestic water at the premises, such as through a domestic water heater,may be controlled by the invention. A water heater and/or Heating,Ventilating and Air Conditioning (HVAC) equipment may respectivelycomprise a controlled appliance 360 a-360 b, as shown in FIG. 2. Acorresponding CAI 400 a-400 b is respectively connected to the waterheater 360 a and HVAC equipment 360 b to control and monitor the energyflow and operation of each piece of equipment. A Temperature Sensor 340measures the ambient temperature at one or more specific locationswithin the premises. The Premises Equipment 300, as installed in thesystem of FIG. 1, is in communication with MCC 200 via communicationnetwork 110. The MCC 200 receives input from and sends displayinformation other components on the network 110, as described above,where such components include, but are not limited to, a networkedcomputer 60 located on and off the target premises, a landline telephone50, a cell phone 40, and a PDA 30 via one or more TelecommunicationsService Gateways 90, 100.

Manual control of the HVAC equipment can be affected locally at thepremises or remotely at any of the aforementioned communicationsdevices. At the premises, local control can take place at the CAI 400through the interface described above. Additional local control may beachieved through the interface implemented on networked computers 60located on the premises. Remote control Premises Equipment may beachieved via an interface implemented on a networked computers 60located somewhere other than the premises through the communicationnetwork 110. Additionally, control of the equipment may be achieved viaaudio interaction on landline telephones 50 and cell phones 40 throughthe IVR Gateway 100, or may be achieved through the exchange of properlyformatted text messages via an SMS compliant cell phone 40 or PDA 30 viathe SMS Gateway 70. SMS control may consist of a user originating orresponding to a message in accordance with a syntax known by the MCC200. The user, for example, may respond in a simple manner to a querygenerated by the MCC 200 and formatted in compliance with SMS. Aresponse may be, for example, a “yes/no” binary response or a value of aparticular setting, such as a set point temperature. The number and typeof messages vary by application and the present invention is not limitedto particular implementations.

Automatic control of the HVAC equipment, and similarly the water heater,may be achieved through Premises Equipment Interface Logic 240 in theMCC 200. The end user may program various heating and cooling profilesthrough manipulation of controls implemented by User Interface Logic 230and settings may be maintained in a suitable format in memory. The MCC200 stores the programming information in Data Store 210 and at therequest of the user, automatically controls the functions of the HVACsystem according to the user's instructions and/or preferences, andincluding such measured features as the available power flowing throughthe flow control device 480. Such programming may include instructionsand setting to operate the HVAC equipment to achieve and maintain adesired temperature within the premises or to operate the HVAC equipmentto limit energy use by the equipment. Such programming may automaticallychange the desired temperature of the premises and/or the desired energyuse of the HVAC equipment based on the status of one or more externalcriteria such as the time of day, the local weather conditions, the costof energy, the open/closed state of the doors and windows within thepremises and presence or absence of occupants.

In an exemplary embodiment, the programming of automated HVAC equipmentoperation is achieved through a Web browser on a networked computer 60.The end user is given a menu of choices for programming the desiredpremises temperature or HVAC energy use according to a calendar-basedschedule and/or in response to certain events, such as a change in theprice of energy. Periodically, an energy provider 20 may change theprice of the energy commodity in response to rapidly fluctuating energysupplier prices. In addition, the energy provider 20 may change theprice of the energy commodity to discourage energy use during periodswhere energy demand approaches the energy supply. Such event-based pricechanges are transmitted from the energy provider 20 to the MCC 200,where the information is used to automatically modify the HVAC equipmentprogramming according to some set of preferences or rules established bythe consumer and conveyed to the system. Another example of an event iswhen the amount of energy use by the HVAC equipment over a certain timeperiod exceeds some predetermined threshold. This energy use informationis available via a Power Flow Sensor 350 monitoring the entire premisesa Power Flow Sensor 490 at an individual appliance.

In certain embodiments of the invention, the HVAC equipment iscontrolled by the present invention to pre-cool and/or pre-heat thepremises during periods of the day when the cost of the energy commodityis at a minimum or below some threshold. Conversely, the HVAC equipmentmay be controlled by the invention to avoid operation during periods ofthe day that have higher energy costs. Automated control of the HVACequipment may also include the ability to control individual HVACcomponents that use less energy, such as a fan, to achieve or extend themaintenance of a desired temperature in the premises so as to avoid ordelay the operation of HVAC components that use more energy, such as theair-conditioner compressor.

In addition to automatically modifying the operation of the HVACequipment based on certain pre-identified events, certain embodiments ofthe invention optionally notify the end user of the events, such asthrough a remote device, so that the end user can confirm their desireto allow a programming change responsive to such events.

Certain embodiments of the invention control pool and spa filtrationsystems to achieve filtration at a desired level of sanitation of thepool or spa water. In such embodiments, Premises Equipment 300 includesthe pool/spa filtration equipment as an appliance 360. A CAI 400 isconnected to the pool/spa filtration equipment to control and monitorthe energy flow and operation of the equipment. One or more TemperatureSensors 340 measure the ambient temperature at one or more specificlocations in proximity to the pool or spa and optionally the temperatureof the water. The Premises Equipment 300 communicates to the MCC 200 viathe communication network 110 and the MCC 200 receives input from andsends display information to end users via the networks and endcommunications devices previously described. The control, monitoring andprogramming may be achieved in a manner similar to that of the HVACembodiment described above with the exception that the target parametersapply to sanitation as opposed to premises temperature, although watertemperature may be a controlled parameter of the pool/spa.

Certain embodiments of the invention may control energy consumingappliances to reduce or eliminate unnecessary operation or certainoperational functions of the appliance, such as when the consumer is notoccupying the premises or when the cost of the energy commodity exceedssome predetermined threshold.

The invention may also be embodied to control energy-consumingappliances to facilitate an aggregated reduction in energy demandresponsive to a predicted or measured shortage or margin between energysupply and demand. For example, the system may allow the energy provider20 to transmit information and make information available to the MCC 200regarding the timing and severity of the shortage, target amounts of theenergy commodity to be reduced and the localities affected. The EnergyProvider Interface Logic 250 may include process instructions thatspecify target energy-consuming appliances in particular premises thatmay be controlled in a manner to achieve the demand reduction target.The MCC 200 may retrieve information from the Data Store 210 specifyinglocations of consumers and recent appliance activity, consumerpreferences, and consumer contractual obligations that identify targetpremises within the targeted localities and particular target applianceswithin target premises. The MCC 200 may solicit and receive informationfrom individual CAIs 400, which are connected to target appliances, todetermine current energy consumption status of the attached appliance.Targeted appliances that are actually in use can be identified andcontrolled to meet demand reduction target ranges with high correlationbetween the actual amount of energy reduction achieved by interruptionof energy to the identified target appliances and a predicted amount ofthat energy reduction. This facilitates greater accuracy in anaggregated reduction in energy demand given a specific demand reductiontarget from the energy provider.

At the commencement of any energy supply shortage period, the MCC 200may transmit information to the CAIs 400 of the targeted appliances tointerrupt the energy to each appliance. The MCC 200 may then continuallymonitor the status of the energy consumption by each target appliance ateach target premises to detect compliance to the energy interruptiontransmission and to facilitate the detection of any command overridemade by a consumer to resume operation of a targeted appliance. Uponoverriding the energy interruption on a targeted appliance by aconsumer, the MCC 200 may identify a new target appliance at either thesame or a different target premises and interrupt energy to the newtarget appliance to offset the energy demand reduction not achieved bythe original targeted appliance. In this manner, the reduction target ofthe energy provider 20 may be maintained, thereby automaticallyameliorating individual non-compliant consumers or other time-varyingfactors which may affect the demand of energy.

At the conclusion of the energy supply margin shortage, the control ofeach energy-consuming device returns to the state it was in prior to theenergy supply margin shortage period. The MCC 200 may employ proceduresfor “staggering” the resumption of energy at those targeted appliancesthat have had their energy interrupted. In this manner, the energysupply system will not overloaded by the inrush demand of simultaneouslyenergized systems.

The invention may also cooperate with third party service providers thatare not energy related, such as home security providers. As describedabove, the invention monitors various aspects of the premises such asthe open/close status of doors and windows, the presence of audioactivity, and the presence of occupants, where such information mayindicate the occupancy status of the premises. Such information may betransmitted to the home security provider via a suitable interface atthe MCC 200.

The descriptions above are intended to illustrate possibleimplementations of the present invention and are not restrictive. Manyvariations, modifications and alternatives will become apparent to theskilled artisan upon review of this disclosure. For example, componentsequivalent to those shown and described may be substituted therefor,elements and methods individually described may be combined, andelements described as discrete may be distributed across manycomponents. The scope of the invention should therefore be determinednot with reference to the description above, but with reference to theappended Claims, along with their full range of equivalents.

1. A system for allowing a user to regulate energy consumption of apremises containing a heating and air conditioning system (HVAC); saidenergy supplied by an energy provider; said system containing: amonitoring and control coordinator; a premises control communicationgateway; a premises display system; a power flow sensor, and acommunicating appliance interface; a. said monitoring and controlcoordinator in communication with the energy provider, and premisescontrol communication gateway; b. said premises control communicationgateway in communication with the monitoring and control coordinator,the premises display, sensors, and communicating appliance interface; c.said monitoring and control coordinator comprising: i. a computer havinga processor and data store; ii. a user interface logic for formattinginformation for presentation to the user and soliciting information fromthe user; iii. a premises equipment interface logic for providinginstructions to and receiving information from the communicatingappliance interface; iv. energy provider logic for providing interactionbetween the monitoring and control coordinator and an applicable datainterface at the energy provider; and v. a connection to the power flowsensor; said power flow sensor providing information to the monitoringand control coordinator for calculating an amount of energy beingconsumed at the premises and how much the energy costs; d. said premisescontrol communications gateway receiving monitoring and control datafrom the monitoring and control coordinator and distributing saidmonitoring and control data through a premises area network tocommunicating appliance interface; e. said communication applianceinterface containing: i. an electrical outlet and a processor fordistributing and controlling consumption of power to an electricconsuming device; ii. an electrical input for plugging into an electricpower outlet; iii. a local power converter for providing local systempower to components of the communication appliance interface; iv. apower flow sensor for measuring power delivered to the electricconsuming device; and v. a premises area network transceiver forproviding communications between the communication appliance interfacesand other components.
 2. The system of claim 1 comprising a networkcomputer device comprises a web browser for allowing a user to inputform requests and commands for transport to the monitoring and controlcoordinator for parsing and acting upon the form requests and commands.3. The system of claim 2 wherein said web browser provides a menu ofchoices for programming a desired temperature in the premises accordingto a calendar based schedule or in response to a change in energypricing.
 4. The system of claim 1 wherein the data store containsheating and cooling profiles selectable through manipulation of controlsimplemented by the user interface logic.
 5. The system of claim 4wherein said profiles contain programming information for automaticallycontrolling functions of the heating and air conditioning system at thepremises.
 6. The system of claim 5 wherein the automatic controllingfunctions change the desired temperature of the premises or energy useof the heating and air condition equipment based on at least one of thefollowing conditions: time of day, local weather conditions, cost ofenergy, open or closed status of doors or windows, and presence orabsence of occupants.
 7. The system of claim 1 wherein said interfacelogic determines whether to store information from the applianceinterface or generate a command to act in response to a system statedetermined from sensor data; said information including a user's energyuse within the premises as measured by the communicating applianceinterface.
 8. The system of claim 1 wherein said energy provider logicperiodically solicits and receives information from the energy provider.9. The system of claim 8 wherein said information received from theenergy provider includes at least one the following: cost of energy,user's current energy use, billing information, user's past energy useand billing information, and status of energy supply and demand.
 10. Thesystem of claim 9 wherein said information transmitted to the energyprovider includes energy outage information for a particular premises,and energy usage per appliance at individual premises.
 11. The system ofclaim 1, wherein said monitoring and control coordinator containscircuitry for: a. determining instantaneous energy being consumed; b.extrapolating energy consumption expressed in units of power; and c.extrapolating energy consumption expressed in units of currency based onpricing information provided by the energy provider.
 12. The system ofclaim 1, wherein said monitoring and control coordinator provides energyinformation from the energy provider to the user; said energyinformation pertaining to: a. past and present billable energy asmeasured by the energy provider; b. cost of energy in the form of energypricing to the user; c. relationship information concerning the energyprovider's energy supply and energy demand; and d. an estimate as towhen demand is presently or is predicted to be at or near the energyprovider's capacity.
 13. The system of claim 1, wherein said premisescontrol communications gateway comprises control logic and local datastorage to provide monitoring and control of the communicating applianceinterface in the event of an interruption in network communications withthe monitoring and control coordinator.
 14. The system of claim 1,wherein said premises display system comprises a processor executing agraphic user interface and is coupled to a touch sensitive display forproviding a user interface to the user.
 15. The system of claim 1,comprising a set of sensors contain communication equipment fortransmitting sensed data through the premises area network; said sensorset containing: a. a light sensor for determining sunlight present aparticular time of day; b. a temperature sensor to determine temperaturein particular areas of the premises; c. a power flow sensor fordetermining the amount of power being locally consumed; d. occupancysensors determining if occupants are present; e. audio sensors forlistening for particular audio events; f. window and door sensors fordetermining whether a window or door is open or closed; and g. proximitysensors for determining whether a particular mobile device or equipmentis present in the premises.
 16. The system of claim 1, wherein thecommunication appliance interface contains sensors for measuring ambientlight at the appliance interface.
 17. The system of claim 1, wherein theHVAC is the electric consuming device.
 18. The system of claim 1,wherein the communication appliance interface comprises a processor unitcomprising at least one of discrete circuitry or a microprocessor forexecuting processor code stored on a storage device; said processor unitimplementing logic to: a. interrupt and restore energy to a connectedelectrical consuming appliance; b. monitor energy usage by the connectedappliance; c. process values obtained by sensor in the communicationappliance interface; d. forward values from the sensors to othercomponents of the system; e. receive and process instructions from auser using the system; f. provide status indicators of the electricconsuming appliance; and g. execute functions to control the connectedappliance in accordance with some logic which has been requested by theuser or energy provider.
 19. The system of claim 1, wherein thecommunication appliance interface comprises user controls forcontrolling various operational aspects of the electric consumingdevice.